The present invention relates to a motor vehicle with a bearer part arranged in the engine compartment and fastenable at least indirectly to supporting structural parts of the vehicle front and to a process for the production of such a motor vehicle.
EP 378,260 A1 describes a bearer part, on which various additional units can be pre-assembled outside the frame in order to reduce the outlay involved in installation of additional units during assembly and in the event of repairs. After the pre-assembly of the additional units, this bearer part is arranged on the body after the body has been completed. The arrangement of the bearer part on the body takes place particularly by interlocking. Subsequently, the cabling of the additional units is laid and is connected appropriately. However, on account of the large number of additional units installed in current motor vehicles, the laying of the cabling is time-consuming and therefore cost-intensive, particularly where repairs are concerned.
DE 4,008,896 A1 describes a front part of a motor-vehicle body in the region of the wheel case, in which, in order to strengthen the body rigidity, the front part has an inner supporting frame which mainly contributes to the rigidity of the body and which possesses an additional strut in the region of the wheelcase. The outer termination of this frame is formed by the panel of the wheel case which covers the frame relative to the outside in the manner of a cover plate. When the crude body is produced in this way, it is painted; subsequently, the engine and, depending on the equipment, various additional units are mounted on the inside of the frame. This outlay is relatively high, however, because different additional units are installed, depending on the equipment of the vehicle to be assembled. These necessitate a high outlay in the laying of, for example, the electrical and/or pneumatic connections of the additional units, hereafter referred to as cabling. In addition, there is always at the same time also a latent risk of confusion which makes costly extra work necessary. Furthermore, in the event of a repair, the outlay caused by the often compact laying of the cabling of the various additional units is very high.
An object of the invention is to provide a motor vehicle and a process for the production thereof such that, even in the case of a freely selectable type diversity and different equipment which can be installed directly on an assembly line, the entire assembly as well as demounting and repair with additional units, engine, etc. can be carried out cost-effectively.
The foregoing object has been achieved by a motor vehicle in which the supporting structural parts are formed by a supporting frame having at least one perforation, such that the bearer part is fastened in a region of a vehicle wheel housing. The at least one perforation is arranged so as to be closed subsequently after the mounting of the bearer part equipped with the additional units and the connecting lines, by way of a cover plate attachable on the outside thereof. The object is also achieved by a process in which producing a frame construction or a supporting frame, having at least one perforation in a region of the wheel housing as a supporting structure of the motor vehicle; the supporting frame is painted; the bearer part is fastened in a region of the perforation, the connecting lines are laid; and the perforation is closed with a cover plate.
With regard to a motor vehicle produced by the process according to the present invention, assembly and cabling of the additional units can be carried out both from inside and from outside the shell of the body, thus entailing a simpler and quicker assembly, demounting and repair. Furthermore, the hitherto necessary and confusing Laying of the cabling around the additional units and other built-on parts can to some extent be disentangled, since it now also becomes possible to bring the cabling between the supporting frame and the cover plate forming the shell of the body. That is, the laying of the cabling can now take place in at least two planes, without the need for any additional structures or holding brackets influencing the cable run and to be additionally mounted, with the result that the aesthetic of the engine compartment are also improved. Moreover, the bearer part effectively reduces a risk of confusion of additional units which has hitherto existed on account of the diversity of the equipment of motor vehicles assembled on a line and which entails cost-intensive extra work.
Furthermore, it has, at the same time, proved beneficial that the functions of the additional units on the equipped bearer parts can be tested before installation in the manner of modules and, in the event of a repair, can also be exchanged as a complete item, with the result that, for example, the work time and therefore, inter alia, the repair costs are reduced.
Because the cover plate does not perform a supporting function or now only to a slight extent, it can be produced from a rust-resistant and/or light material, such as plastic, or possibly also from recycled materials and can be fastened to the frame in a simple and releasable manner.
Advantageously, the bearer part can be configured so that the risk which, in the event of an accident, stems from a displacements of the additional units mounted on the bearer part is reduced in a-simple way. The reduction of this risk is possible, for example, in that the bearer frame is fastened to the supporting frame so that, in the event of an accident, it can shift upwards, with the result that none of the additional-units arranged thereon can penetrate into the passenger compartment.